Quarter off & Pre-req question

[GuacAndRoll]

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hi sdn! Due to familial and financial circumstances, I will be taking the Spring (and potentially Fall) quarters away from my 4 year university). I have registered back at my local junior college (where I did my fresh/soph years) for some 'fun' classes (ceramics/art history), a language, and potentially an algebra-based physics class.

I've read through older threads that stated med schools look down on students who took pre-reqs at JC instead of their home institution. My reasoning is for the above family/financial purposes, and not that I'm looking for an easy A. I am concerned it will be automatically dismissed since I did not take them at my 4-year? I have no problem discussing my family/financial context on my app.

The JC sequence is two semesters vs 4-year sequence of 3 quarters. If I do take off the Fall quarter I will finish the physics sequence. Not taking it at the JC would mean I push back my planned application year by one, which is an option since i'm already planning on 1-2 gap years.

Thank you in advance for your time & advice!

 

[efle]

My guess: how this affects you will depend very heavily on your MCAT score and your grades in the science classes you do have at the university.

 

[efle]

A single sequence at a JC is unlikely to have significant impact except at the few school still left that simply do not accept CC credits

I have registered back at my local junior college (where I did my fresh/soph years)

Won't this be 3 years worth at CC now, not just a single sequence?

 

[GuacAndRoll]

@efle and @gonnif first, thank you for your time!

At my JC I took two bio classes (B/B), a chem course (F, but for reasons related to current context) and a stats class (A)

At my 4-year I'm 1/2 done with the bio sequence (A/B), and have taken one math class (C *cringe*). I will have enough credits to graduate from the 4-year with a BA when I return.



I know I'm in for several gap years, but I'd rather do it slow and steady since my grade trends are all over the place

 

[efle]

What are your sGPA and cGPA currently at? You may not need multiple gap years if you finish the next two years with a strong (3.7+) trend and have an overall GPA in the mid-3s

 

[GuacAndRoll]

sGPA 3.4 (some neuroscience bumps) and cGPA 3.5. Both hopefully going to increase as time goes on (working though my family/finance difficulty).

I'm going to start looking into post-bacc programs, since I will be done with bio and partially done with physics I'm thinking DIY (probably via extension?)

Thanks again for your help!

 

[efle]

With a current 3.4-3.5 you should not need a post-bacc if you can keep a 3.7+ for the next few semesters! Once your overall numbers get up near the national accepted median (3.6x) a post bacc no longer makes much sense, your MCAT and story/ECs will be the deciding factors

 

[GuacAndRoll]

Thank you for the kind words! I really appreciate your time and help.

My thinking along the lines of a post bacc was that I will return for 1-2 quarters and might not finish all of the pre-reqs at my 4-year university. However, thats still two quarters away, and I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.

Thanks again!